Black-Owned Businesses to Shop this Holiday Season

Montclair Flowers and Gifts creates bountiful flower arrangements. Image courtesy of Chad Smith via Pinterest, 2020.

by Melissa Hawk

The holiday season is here...shop Montclair to help keep our community strong! We're taking the opportunity to highlight several Black-owned businesses in Montclair that you should shop at year-round. If you are a business that would like to be featured, please reach out to us via our contact page or send us a DM on Instagram, @montclair.NEWJERSEY.

Dem Two Hands (demtwohands.com) 

Celebrating 30 years this fall, Dem Two Hands offers distinctive clothing, upcycled jewelry, and housewares designed by owner Marion Lake. Hailing from Guyana, Lake learned sewing from her mother and later studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology. According to the business' biography, Lake's longtime mission for the business is for "women to feel comfortable in their skin, regardless of their size, shape, or age." To help you look and feel your best, Dem Two Hands even offers a Youtube channel to share styling tips. Dem Two Hands’ pieces are sure to send you out in style.

Rose and Co. Candlemakers (roseandcocandles.com)

Taking her father’s allergy to wax candles as motivation, 13-year-old entrepreneur Rose Powell created Rose and Co. Candlemakers alongside. Using gentle ingredients like scented soy and coconut, each candle is poured by hand and features an eco-friendly wick, and is free of dyes. The catalog features popular scents like lemon, lavender, and rose, and the candles have empowering and unique names like “100% That Girl” and “Boss Life.” Powell even donates a portion of proceeds to charities that support Girls' education. With beautiful packaging and gentle ingredients, Rose and Co. Candlemakers will take your self-care routine to the next level.

Ikuzi Dolls (ikuzidolls.com)

In 2014, Ozi Okaro created Ikuzi Dolls. After about a year of developing the design, ensuring her vision for the dolls had been reflected, Okaro started selling Black dolls. Now, when children receive her dolls, she wants them to “look at it and see it reflect their image...to fall in love with what they have to give the world.” Okaro explains that having representation like Ikuzi Dolls when she was younger would have meant the world for her. For non-POC children, her intent for Ikuzi Dolls is to cultivate and encourage inclusion. Many who have received the dolls send pictures to Okaro expressing their gratitude and love for them. “It brings a big smile to my face,” Okaro exclaims, adding that her future goal for the company is for it to be “looked at as a company that helps children grow up to love a bit more.”

Montclair Flowers and Gifts (montclairflorist.net)

Since 2015, Chad Smith Sr. has been the owner of Montclair Flowers and Gifts. Before then, his parents ran the shop, which they opened in 1972 as Montclair Flowers Incorporated. “One thing I do pride myself on is that we are a legacy business,” Smith explains. An alumnus of Montclair State University, Smith started working with his father in 1999 and it was pivotal in inspiring his career journey. As for his favorite part of running the flower shop, Smith finds joy in building relationships with his customers and the community. When brides are looking for wedding arrangements, Smith “picture[s] what’s gonna make their day stand out...the one thing I try and make easy is putting the flowers together.” Smith’s hope for Montclair Flowers and Gifts is to make his customers happy and make sure that “people know that there is a company that does have their back no matter what.”